(Castle Hill, NSW)
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Victoria&aposs Angela Tatt became the fourth first-time winner in five events on this season&aposs ALPG Tour at the Castle Hill Country Club Pro-Am today. Her round of 4-under par 70 was one shot better than runner-up Joanne Bannerman of NSW.
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On a day that started with benign conditions that were perfect for scoring, the morning players took full advantage with four of the Top-5 playing in the 7.30am shotgun start. Tatt was one of those, starting on the 17th hole and the PGA Trainee from Midlands Golf Club got off to a solid start with two pars before making a birdie on the 1st hole (her 3rd). Two bogeys on the two par-3’s (2nd and 4th) saw her battling to stay in the hunt but back-to-back birdies were followed up with another one on the 9th to move her to 2-under par.
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With seven holes to play, Tatt had started thinking that she might be in the hunt, saying, “I knew what won here last year (3-under), I thought if I could jag another couple of birdies, I’d be in with a show. But I knew there were so many good players in the afternoon field.” She achieved her goal with another brace of birdies on the 12th and 13th holes before holding on to finish with three straight pars. She stated that it could have been much better, listing the last three holes as “missed birdie opportunities”.
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The $2,250.00 winner’s cheque virtually assures Tatt of exemptions into the ANZ Ladies Masters and Women’s Australian Open which she was “excited and nervous” about, stating “that was my goal at the start of the season”. She also said, “The Open’s not too far from my home course, so there’ll be plenty of Midlands members out there plus the family.” Asked why she performed so well on the Castle Hill layout, Tatt confirmed her fondness for the course, saying, “The course is awesome, I love it. I love the layout. It kind of relaxes me with all the ponds, waterfalls, the gardens , the birdlife.”
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Cumberland Golf Club head professional, Joanne Bannerman, is also looking for starts in the major tournaments and her runner-up placing will go a long way towards achieving that goal. Her round of 3-under par 71 included an eagle (on the 13th), three birdies and two bogeys. She has moved up to 20th on this season’s Order of Merit while Tatt moved to 12th.
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In a tie for 3rd place on 2-under par 72 were South Australia’s Susie Mathews, Victoria’s Vicky Thomas and Malaysian Bing Lim. These were significant results for each of these players in the context of the Club Car Series. Mathews (730 points) moved from 8th to 6th and is the only player to score points in each of the first five events, while Lim (630 points), moved from 16th to 9th with three events remaining. Last year&aposs Series&apos winner, Thomas, moved from 14th to 8th place with 640 points, still trailing Series leader Stacey Tate who sits on 1200 points after her back-toback victories last week. For the latest standings in the Club Car Series, click here.